TOWSON, MD—The eighth annual Baltimore County Public Schools Independent Research Symposium can be viewed online this year beginning on Wednesday, June 3.

The symposium showcases original research conducted by students at five BCPS high schools during the 2019-20 school year. During this spring’s closure of school buildings due to the pandemic, students have engaged in remote learning facilitated by their library media specialists to create and record their research presentations at home. Students, parents, staff, and community members interested in supporting these students and learning more about the Independent Research Seminar course are invited to view the Virtual Symposium.

Students at Franklin, Hereford, Parkville, Perry Hall, and Western School of Technology high schools were selected to participate in the Independent Research Seminar elective course this year, based on their commitment to following an advanced research process to conduct in-depth original research. Student researchers worked collaboratively and independently under the guidance of their library media specialists, faculty advisors, and expert mentors.

Students used the process and resources provided in an online research framework to generate a research question, conduct a literature review, write a research proposal, and synthesize their findings to create a presentation for an audience. Research topics address a variety of subjects and are based on the students’ own areas of interest. High school administrators, counselors, and library media specialists interested in offering the Independent Research Seminar at their schools will find implementation resources available online.

The 2020 BCPS Independent Research Seminar students and their research topics are:

Rebecca Angin, Grade 11, Parkville High School, “Elitism in Education”
Lena Bell, Grade 11, Franklin High School, “De-extinction of the Thylacine”
Kaitlyn Beyer, Grade 11, Hereford High School, “Genetic Engineering: Medical Marvel, or Medical Mistake?”​
Kaitlyn Crowley, Grade 12, Hereford High School, “Motherhood: To what extent are societal pressures placed on women to have children and what are the effects of these pressures?”
Linna Cui, Grade 12, Perry Hall High School, “Music Therapy for Behavior and Cognition: Effects of Classical Music on the Progression of Alzheimer’s Disease”
Falon Gustin, Grade 12, Western School of Technology and Environmental Science, “LGBTQ+ Representation in School Curricula and Media”
Max Harris, Grade 11, Franklin High School, “A Look Into Topology with a Theory on the Square Peg Problem”
Ethan Jacobson, Grade 12, Hereford High School, “Potential for Serotonergic Psychedelics in Assisted Psychotherapy”
Hafeez Mustafa, Grade 11, Western School of Technology and Environmental Science, “The Role of Social and News Media on the Stock Market”
Matthew Rubinstein, Grade 12, Franklin High School, “Reforming the United States System of Campaign Finance”
Mahnoor Sarfraz, Grade 12, Perry Hall High School, “How can the United States government implement regulations which will decrease the cost of prescription medicines for Americans?”
Jeffrey Thewsuvat, Grade 12, Western School of Technology and Environmental Science, “Exploring the Subatomic World: Quantum Teleportation”